Barbara Morris' students incorporated the outside world into their LEVEL III READING/WRITING classes last year. In January, Gaby Guzman and her classmates challenged Barbara to a snowfight during Guzman's first snow. The activity "broke the ice" for the class, who later incorporated the "chilling" event into their compositions. Another hands-on experience came when Barbara escorted In-Kyung Kim, who hopes to be a middle school teacher, to a Boys and Girls Club summer camp. There In-Kyung taught a group of 10-13 year olds a traditional Korean game, which she had earlier presented to her Listening/Speaking class.

Lowell Riethmuller's LEVEL IV READING/WRITING class completed on-line writing assignments from Lowell's R/W IV class web page. They used search engines to find information in electronic scavenger hunts, solving short, baffling mysteries and writing their own team-based stories in the Chain Story activity. The web page can be found at www.udel.edu/eli/rw4.

Students may now select a LEVEL V GENERAL ENGLISH Reading/Writing class. Piloted by Mary McCloskey in 1999, the new class, now usually taught by Russ Mason, provides a further option to students who do not wish to study academic or business English. It uses texts drawn from sources intended for native speakers, such as Raise the Issues, writing projects based on contemporary issues and a solid grammar curriculum. The popular class meets a need students have expressed for some time.

Wendy Bulkowski's LEVEL V ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC PURPOSES Reading/Writing class visited the Amish country in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, not far from Newark in connection with a reading in the Beyond Words textbook. They toured the Amish Farm and Village, where a local guide, who was a retired theology professor, explained details of Amish domestic life and clothing as well as religious practices. The farm includes a house filled with Amish clothes and furnishings and a farmyard with chickens, ducks, cows, sheep and an antique wind-driven water system.

Teacher Lisa Grimsley (seated, right) joined members of the American Culture class at the home of Congressman Pitts (standing, right).

In April, Lisa Grimsley's AMERICAN CULTURE class had the rewarding experience of having dinner with Congressman Joseph R. Pitts (PA) and his family in his home. During the evening, students were encouraged to ask about U. S. relations with their countries. Quite a lively discussion ensued as students and Americans exchanged opinions and pondered world issues.

The students in Walt Babich's ADVANCED AMERICAN CULTURE Listening/Speaking class had an opportunity to learn a variety of American songs last summer. They practiced and sang cowboy, country, hobo, soul and blues songs. The class favorite was Twelve Gates to the City, an African American gospel song, which the students sang loudly, clapping their hands and swaying to the rhythm in an enthusiastic choir!

In the spring of 2000, Barbara Gillette's ENGLISH THROUGH THE NEWS class conducted a survey on the U.S. presidential election. A total of 100 Americans were interviewed on their voting preferences and the reasons behind them. The class found that in May 2000 38% of the voters interviewed intended to vote for Democrat Al Gore, compared to only 30% who expected to vote for Republican George Bush. The class was surprised to discover that 32%, who were mostly young voters, didn't know or care about the election.

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